Next month, 10-year-old Keana Bauer will be saying goodbye to her long brown hair, but this will be no regular haircut.
The Grade 5 student has made up her mind to have her head shaved, and her hair donated to cancer patients at Edmonton’s annual Hair Massacure event.
Keana’s decision wasn’t a spontaneous thought. The Barrhead youngster has been growing her light brown locks over two years for the sole purpose of donating it.
“About two and a half years ago she came to me and said that she was going to grow her hair out and donate it for cancer,” said mother Colleen Bauer. “Then shortly after that we were at West Edmonton Mall, and they had a big banner advertising the Hair Massacure.”
Keana questioned what the Hair Massacure was, and Colleen explained it was an event where people shaved their heads to raise money for cancer.
Since then, Keana has been determined not only to grow and donate her hair, but to raise money at the same time.
Colleen said Keana didn’t give up on the idea, and hasn’t let anyone trim her hair since Sept. 2012.
“I kept thinking she would let go of it, but she wouldn’t let me cut her hair and she’s been growing it,” said Colleen. “This year, I decided it was the year to do it. I asked her if she’s still sure it’s what she wants to do, and she looks at me like I’m crazy and says of course.”
On Jan. 13, mom and daughter officially signed themselves up for Hair Massacure online with a fundraising goal of $1,000. Their team name? Bald is Beautiful.
“Mom’s going to shave her head bald too,” said Colleen. “Because if my girl can do it, then I can do it.”
Colleen can’t donate her hair because it’s short, but she did have it dyed pink last Thursday to help raise awareness until the two get their heads shaved.
The pretty pink highlights are complements of the cosmetic lab at Barrhead Composite, where teacher Lori Sagbo and her Grade 12 student Kendall Holwerda dyed it free of charge for the cause.
How does mom look with pink in her hair? Keana could only give a cheeky smile in response.
The day after the two had registered online for the Hair Massacure, Colleen recalls a moment when she was putting a ponytail in Keana’s hair. She questioned her daughter about the decision to shave her head, only to receive a response that would make any parent proud.
“I said to her, ‘In a month you’re not going to have any hair left to put in a ponytail. How do you feel about that?’” Said Colleen. “And she said, ‘Yes mom, but somebody else will have hair for a ponytail.’”
Keana has always been a very compassionate young girl, said Colleen. She has grown up wanting to help other people if she can, and the donation of her hair is Keana’s way of doing just that.
“I’m proud of her and her determination, that she has stuck with it,” said Colleen. “Cancer touches all of us in one way or another in our lifetime. It would be good to have a positive interaction instead of a negative one.”
Shaving her head isn’t the only thing Keana is doing to raise money towards her goal. If you’re lucky, you might be able to purchase an original piece of artwork from the elementary school student.
“I’m selling paintings that I do,” said Keana, who still had paint on her hands and jeans from art class at school.
Her favourite things to paint are animals, of all kinds. Keana got the idea to sell her creations last week, but Colleen said she has always loved to paint. There are paint splatters on the Bauer household walls to prove it.
Colleen and Keana will be accepting donations right up until Feb. 14, when the two will head to West Edmonton Mall for the 2014 Hair Massacure.
So what will it be like for Keana to have no hair? She may be a little nervous to say goodbye to her long ponytail, but there are some perks to shaving your head on Valentines Day.
“When you get it shaved, since it’s on Feb. 14, you get little hearts on your head with the [razor],” said Keana.
Keana did have her hair quite short when she was four years old, courtesy of an unsupervised hairstyling event in the Bauer household.
“She has a twin sister and they decided to give each other haircuts,” laughed Colleen. “That was really a massacre, not a Massacure.”
The first Hair Massacure event was held in 2002, and has been growing steadily and expanding to more locations each passing year.
Money raised at the Edmonton event will go to three charities; Make-a-Wish Northern Alberta, Stollery Children’s Hospital Foundation, and Ronald McDonald House Northern Alberta.
Anyone interested in contributing to Keana and Colleen’s goal of $1,000 can visit http://hairmassacure.com and select Northern Alberta.
